Statue of Liberty being built in Paris, 1886.
Statue of Liberty being built in Paris, 1886.
Image copyrightRICHARD HUGHES (@RICHHUGHESWILDLIFE)Image captionThis photograph was taken by Richard Hughes at Woburn Safari Park in BedfordshireImage copyrightVICTORIA FULLImage captionVictoria Full took this photograph at Fewston Reservoir, Yorkshire
Wow that's so....completely 'unamazing'.
I have to admit, I'm not that amazed.
I think this one is, to be fair
Kyle Heller has been named the Royal Navy's photographer of the year for his portfolio of imagery from HMS Queen Elizabeth's deployment to the east coast of the USA.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionAn F-35B Lightning jet sits on HMS Queen Elizabeth's flight deck during the aircraft carrier's deployment to the east coast of the USA, an annual mission known as Westlant 19
Heller was selected from the pool of the Royal Navy's own dedicated photographers, all of them serving sailors or Royal Marines, to be awarded the Peregrine Trophy in the annual competition.
The photographer's images show a behind-the-scenes look at life in the Royal Navy, from emotional homecomings to frontline ops.
"This is a job like no other - it sounds clichéd, but it's true. I'm still trying to get my head round winning the award, in all honesty," said Heller.
"I'm not one for the plaudits at all and for me it's about the opportunities, experience and variation that you get with this job.
"Life is never dull and you're there, part of history in those big moments."
Heller became a Royal Navy photographer in late 2009, having joined the Royal Navy in 1998 aged 17 and serving on HMS Beaver, HMS Sheffield and HMS Cornwall.
Here is a selection of winning photos by Heller.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionNorwegian anti-submarine frigate HNoMS Thor Heyerdahl joins the UK's Carrier Strike Group as it sails across the Atlantic
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionA Royal Marine begins his descent from a Merlin helicopter during exercises on HMS Queen Elizabeth
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image caption845 Naval Air Squadron conducts a search-and-rescue training mission from HMS Queen Elizabeth
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionThe view of HMS Queen Elizabeth's flight deck during operational testing with the UK's F-35B Lightning jets
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionAn F-35B Lightning jet lands on HMS Queen Elizabeth as she sails closely with tanker RFA Tideforce and Type 23 frigate HMS Northumberland
IMAGE COPYRIGHTKYLE HELLER
image captionRoyal Navy sailor Phillip Hulbert searches the crowd for his family as HMS Queen Elizabeth returns to Portsmouth
Here are other striking photos entered in this year's competition, including winning images in different categories.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTBARRY SWAINSBURY
image captionA member of HMS Cattistock's crew returns home to his family after 10 months away on a Nato deployment. Winner of the Royal Navy Royal Marines Charity Family and Friends Award
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMARINE JAMES CLARKE
image captionTwo Royal Marines from 40 Commando Recce Troop pose for a photograph whilst on a military training exercise in California. This image was part of the winning selection by Amateur Photographer of the Year, Marine James Clarke
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSTEVIE BURKE
image captionA Royal Marines assault engineer prepares a charge during ice demolition training in the Arctic Circle. This image won the Global Operations Prize
IMAGE COPYRIGHTDAN SHEPHERD
image captionA British F-35B Lightning jet pilot walks across HMS Queen Elizabeth's flight deck with his fighter jet in the background
IMAGE COPYRIGHTDAN SHEPHERD
image captionHMS Queen Elizabeth as seen through the cockpit of a Merlin helicopter
IMAGE COPYRIGHTDANIEL SHEPHERD
image captionRoyal Marines board a Merlin helicopter during exercises on the flight deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth
Photos from the Royal Navy photographic awards will be on public display at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire from December 2020 until March 2021.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSERGEY GORSHKOV/WPY2020
image captionSergey Gorshkov's winning WPY image is called The Embrace
To photograph one of rarest creatures on Earth you have to be incredibly skilled and remarkably lucky.
But Sergey Gorshkov is clearly both - as demonstrated by his stunning picture of a Siberian, or Amur, tiger deep in the forests of Russia's Far East.
The image has just won him the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
The female tiger is seen embracing a tree, rubbing herself against the bark to leave her scent and mark territory in Land of the Leopard National Park.
"The lighting, the colours, the texture - it's like an oil painting," says WPY chair of judges Roz Kidman-Cox.
"It's almost as if the tiger is part of the forest. Her tail blends with the roots of the tree. The two are one," she told BBC News.
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media captionWatch the moment HRH The Duchess of Cambridge announces the winner
All the more extraordinary is that this is a camera-trap image. The equipment was set up in the forest and left, waiting to trigger automatically when a tiger came by.
Of course, Sergey had to know where he'd be most likely to frame the animal - and that's where the skill of an experienced wildlife photographer comes into play.
Eastern Russia's tigers were hunted to near-extinction and probably now number only a few hundred individuals. And with their prey - mostly deer and wild boar - also diminished, it means the Amurs must range over vast distances to find food.
It all adds to the difficulty of securing any sort of picture, never mind one that looks as impressive as Sergey's. But consider this: the camera-trap that took the winning picture was left in the field for 10 months before its memory card with its precious image file was recovered.
To be a top wildlife photographer you also have to be extremely patient.
Sergey's grand prize award was announced by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge and TV presenters Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin during an online event organised by London's Natural History Museum.
The NHM runs the WPY competition, which is now in its 56th year.
The fox that got the goose by Liina Heikkinen, Finland
IMAGE COPYRIGHTLIINA HEIKKINEN/WPY2020
This image of a young fox consuming a barnacle goose earned Finnish teenager Liina not only a win in the category for 15-17 yearolds, but the overall grand prize for junior photographers. The fox had forced itself into a crevice to try to stop its siblings getting at the meal.
"The judges particularly liked it because only a really keen young naturalist would have been able to get such a picture," explained Roz Kidmand-Cox. "The composition is wonderful. Liina must have been lying on the ground because she's eye to eye with that young fox."
The pose by Mogens Trolle, Denmark
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMOGENS TROLLE/WPY2020
A young male proboscis monkey in profile. It is the WPY Animal Portraits winner this year. The picture was taken at the Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary in Sabah, Borneo. That splendid nose will get even bigger as the young primate matures. It'll give his calls a bigger sound, and it will probably come to signal his status in the group.
Etna's river of fire by Luciano Gaudenzio, Italy
IMAGE COPYRIGHTLUCIANO GAUDENZIO/WPY2020
WPY isn't only about animals. This image taken on the north side of Europe's most active volcano won the Earth's Environments category. Luciano Gaudenzio had to brave heat and stinking steam to get close to his subject. He described the scene as hypnotic, the vent resembling "an open wound on the rough and wrinkled skin of a huge dinosaur".
Life in the balance by Jaime Culebras, Spain
IMAGE COPYRIGHTJAIME CULEBRAS/WPY2020
This glass frog snacking on a spider is the winner in the WPY category for Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles. Jaime took this picture in Ecuador's Manduriacu Reserve - during a torrential downpour. He had to hold an umbrella and flash in one hand while operating the camera in the other.
A tale of two wasps by Frank Deschandol, France
IMAGE COPYRIGHTFRANK DESCHANDOL/WPY2020
A specially built, superfast shutter system was needed to frame and freeze these two wasps in Normandy, northern France. The red-banded sand wasp (left) and the cuckoo wasp are about to enter next-door nest holes. Frank Deschandol wins the Behaviour: Invertebrates category.
The golden moment by Songda Cai, China
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSONGDA CAI/WPY2020
The Under Water category winner for 2020. This is a tiny diamondback squid. It's a paralarva - meaning it's beyond a hatchling but not quite a subadult. Songda took this on a night dive off the coast of Anilao, in the Philippines. The animal is about 6-7cm in length.
When mother says run by Shanyuan Li, China
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSHANYUAN LI/WPY2020
These are young Pallas's cats, or manuls, which are found on the remote steppes of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in northwest China. Shanyuan captured this image of the playful kittens after six years of tracking and studying the animals. The picture wins the Behaviour: Mammals category.
The Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards are normally presented during a gala dinner at the NHM in South Kensington. But, as with so many events in the era of Covid, organisers had no choice but to go virtual this time. The highly popular exhibition will proceed as normal, however. It opens on Friday, but is ticket only. Booking is essential.
Entries for next year's awards start being accepted on Monday.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSERGEY GORSHKOV
image captionSergey Gorshkov preparing his camera traps ready to deploy in Leopard National Park
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSERGEY GORSHKOV
image captionThe territory is huge and the tigers will travel hundreds of km to find prey
That Tiger shot is truly awesome.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMICHAEL KENT
image captionThis out-of-this-world shot of the milky way above Lonan House in Glen Lonan was snapped by Michael Kent.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTANDRENA COBURN
image captionAutumn has arrived. Andrena Coburn's daughter shares her name with the season and enjoys her special time of year playing hide and seek behind the big fir trees in the Hermitage at Dunkeld.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMICHELLE BORLAND
image captionDoe a deer - this friendly female deer wasn't shy as she met Michelle Borland on a visit to Glencoe.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMARION REID
image captionRay - this drop of golden sun adds the finishing touches to Marion Reid's portrait of autumn.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTBRUCE MELVIN
image captionMe myself and I - Bruce Melvin's daughter Evie has the hills near Cairnsmore of Fleet all to herself in this picture.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMALCOLM ALLAN
image captionCanoe believe how beautiful the light and the broody sky look for this kayaker on Loch Bracadale, Skye?
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMARC MCCUBBIN
image captionOh deer - this majestic creature was waiting for a snack from Marc McCubbin from Renfrew at the Kingshouse Hotel in Glencoe.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTM MCLELLAN
image captionA molten sunset pours liquid gold over Seamill beach in Arran.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTFLORA ZOLTOWSKA
image captionA housebreaking squirrel is caught in the act stealing nuts in Edinburgh.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTCHRISTINE JOHNSTON
image captionWho says we only choose dogs? Cleo the cat represents the feline faction as she enjoys the autumn sunshine in her garden in Motherwell.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTAOIBHEANN DEVINE
image captionA line of the times: Aoibheann Devine thought this washing line near Pittenweem was very 2020.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSTEPHANIE BROUGH
image captionAhead of the curve: Stephanie Brough got the best part of the day on her morning run through the McLennan Arch on Glasgow Green.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTCHRISTIE MELLIS
image captionWhy couldn't the pony sing? Because he was a little hoarse: Christie Mellis reckons her son Nathaniel was sharing a joke with a local horse where his gran stays near Cove, Kilcreggan.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTMAUREEN KERRIGAN
image captionHaving it Largs: A rainbow encapsulates the North Ayrshire town, spotted from the Cumbrae ferry terminal by Maureen Kerrigan.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTALISON ROBERTS
image captionNo going back: Lucy, aged 10 braces for the cold after jumping off the slipway at Lamlash Bay, Arran as her mum Alison Roberts snapped the shot.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTNEIL HOWIE
image captionThis tree-mendous picture of Finn the Cocker Spaniel at the Cat Gates at Culzean Castle has a cinematic feel to it.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSANDIE POW
image captionSandie Pow's husband Colin travels at the speed of kite as he surfs on the family's favourite beach, Sands of Luce in Dumfries and Galloway.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSTEPHEN ROBERTSON
image captionStephen Robertson soaked up the rich colours of autumn highlighted in this beautiful sunset over the hamlet of Altandhu and the summer isles.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTLISA MCKERLEY DOUGLAS
image captionFour-year-old George is on track for a nice day out as he waves at the approaching train driver and passengers on the miniature railway as Strathaven Model Society staged the final rides of 2020.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSARAH MORRIS
image captionMist and yellow fruitfulness: Autumn colours take over in the back garden of Sarah Morris in Hamilton.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTGENE WEBSTER
image captionGene Webster saw some shades of Halloween in this in-tree-guing shot taken at Glenmore in Aviemore.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTALAN BRUCE
image captionSea bass: Alan Bruce from Edinburgh captured this cold-looking view of Bass rock with gannets looking on.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTSYLVIA BEAUMONT
image captionThree Exmoor ponies at North Berwick Law take a colt hard look at a couple of dogs walking past.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTLINDA YOUNG
image captionWish view were here: Linda Young captures Ard Neackie on Loch Eriboll - a rocky promontory connected to the mainland by a sandy spit.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTROSS COLLINS
image captionLeave me alone: Ross Collins witnesses a car-free Kelvin Way in Glasgow as it remains pedestrian-only for social distancing.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTAMY ROSS-HENDERSON
image captionJoe and Joshua appreciate a neighbour's rainbow in support of our NHS.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTJANINA DOLNY
image captionMussel Beach: Jan DolnyI took an autumnal walk along Musselburgh Beach and was reminded how the town got its name, with thousands of mussel shells lining the shoreline beyond Fisherrow Harbour.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTCRAIG BUCHAN
image captionDrama scene: Craig Buchan's photo from St Fillans looking out over Loch Earn looks like the start of a movie with the morning mist breaking over the still loch.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTPHILIP GRAHAM
image captionIn the run-up to Halloween, this moody picture of the light at the end of the tunnel on Inchcolm Island in the Firth of Forth has a hint of Harry Potter about it, and He Who Must Not Be Named.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTARRAN KEIR
image captionIt's not Ard to see why we loved this mirror image shot of Loch Ard by Alan from Glasgow.
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We often go hiking at the Karangaheke Gorge and on the other side of the river is an old tunnel that used to be used for mini-rail transport of gold and other things I can't think of right now.
Cool pic
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